Probe into plane crash that left four injured

The remains of a light aircraft that crashed with five passengers on board at Boschkop. Picture: Thobile Mathonsi/ANA

Pretoria - Aviation authorities are investigating the cause of a light aircraft crash at Kitty Hawk Aerodrome in Boschkop on Friday, which left four passengers seriously injured.

The aircraft, a Piper Seneca III, was carrying a pilot and four passengers at the time of the crash which occurred at about 10.45am.

Four passengers suffered serious injuries and were taken to a nearby hospital. The pilot walked away with only minor injures.

When the Pretoria News arrived at the scene, pieces of the crashed small aircraft, a wheel and broken glass lay scattered around a veld inside the aerodrome.

It is believed the plane was flying from Springs and was scheduled to return there later that day. Boschkop Police also confirmed the crash.

A farmworker on the smallholding next to the aerodrome said he heard a loud thump before seeing a cloud of dark smoke.

He said he wasn’t surprised, because this was the third time a plane had crashed in the five years he had been working in the area.

“Immediately after hearing that sound and seeing smoke, I knew it was another plane,” he said.

Kabelo Ledwaba, the Civil Aviation Authority spokesperson, said the aircraft accident and incident investigation team had started gathering, recording and analysing all relevant information to determine the probable cause of the crash.

Ledwaba said investigations could take a while to complete. In instances where an investigation took longer than 12 months, the team would issue an interim statement.

“The completion of an investigation is marked by the release of a final accident report which might also contain safety recommendations,” he said.

In 2016, a 64-year-old man died after a light aircraft crash at Kitty Hawk Aerodrome soon after take-off.

Netcare 911 paramedics tried to resuscitate the man, to no avail. Another man sustained slight injuries.